F3 Euroseries news

Vernay takes Macau qualification race

Frenchman Jean-Karl Vernay has taken victory in the Macau Grand Prix qualification race on Saturday. With the results determining the starting grid ahead of Sunday's main event, the Signature driver will line up alongside TOM's Toyota man Marcus Ericsson with Sam Bird, the leading British contender, in seventh.

With grid positions for the qualification race having been decided by drivers' best laps over the course of Thursday and Friday's sessions, it was Ericsson starting from the front although Vernay was already through as the field thread it way towards the infamous Lisboa corner for the first time.

As Ericsson snatched the lead back at Turn 1, however, the first lap was not completed without the deployment of the Safety Car due to a big accident for Jake Rosenzweig, who retired at Mandarin curve.

There was another change of leadership on the Lap 4 restart as Vernay, whose move had not stuck the first time, shot back past Swede Ericsson into Lisboa, with the TOM's man then coming under immense pressure from Edoardo Mortara in the second Signature entry.

With Mortara later happy to have finished the race after making contact with rivals on at least two occasions, his Lap 8 overtake on was questionable due to localised yellow flags and so the Swede was duly handed the position back, with the dicing duo later completing the podium behind Vernay.

The action was not yet over, though, as the race ended behind the Safety Car, brought out in order for marshals to clean up the track after Wayne Bord's Hitech clipped the back of the team's sister car to be launched airbourne and into an enormous helicopter accident.

With pole man Ericsson in a Signature 1-2 at the front, Masters of F3 winner Valtteri Bottas claimed fourth spot with Laurens Vanthoor making it three Signatures in the top five. British F3 Champion Daniel Ricciardo came home sixth for Carlin, ahead of Briton Bird's ART, with Takuto Iguchi, Roberto Merhi and Mika Mäki rounding out the top ten.

Jules Bianchi, the F3 Euroseries Champion, had nothing short of a disaster after hitting the San Francisco wall on Lap 1 due to clipping Mortara's left-rear wheel; the Frenchman, despite pitting for repairs, still managed to climb back up to 21st of the 26 finishers by taking advantage of the first Safety Car. Brendon Hartley came to grief at Lisboa when contacting Stefano Coletti's car in the battle for eighth spot, meaning the New Zealander finished the afternoon way down in 24th.


The field will start Sunday's 56th Macau Grand Prix in the order in which they completed Saturday's qualification race, with those who retired setting off from the back of the grid.

more news

• 09 Feb.
  • Coletti partners Mansell at Comtec
• 08 Feb.
  • Marroc joins Juncadella at Prema
  • Prema signs Juncadella for 2010
• 29 Jan.
  • Williams signs Bottas as test driver
• 22 Dec. '09
  • Munoz joins Mücke for 2010
• 17 Dec. '09
  • Carlin: Feeder series being recognised
• 12 Dec. '09
  • Motopark Academy confirms Félix da Costa
• 11 Dec. '09
  • Ocean signs Félix da Costa for 2011
• 10 Dec. '09
  • Van der Zande to join F2 test in Portugal
  • Trophies handed out in Paris
  • Merhi joins Mücke for 2010
• 09 Dec. '09
  • Motopark to use Volkswagen engines
• 30 Nov. '09
  • Jokinen targeting fastest testing times
• 22 Nov. '09
  • Mortara wins Macau Grand Prix
• 21 Nov. '09
  • Vernay grateful for second Safety Car
  • Vernay takes Macau qualification race
• 20 Nov. '09
  • Ericsson grabs Macau pole
  • Official: Bianchi handed Ferrari test
• 19 Nov. '09
  • Ericsson fastest in first Macau qualifying
• 18 Nov. '09
  • 'Bianchi to test Ferrari at Jerez'
• 02 Nov. '09
  • Rosenzweig tests for Fortec
• 25 Oct. '09
  • Vernay wins chaotic last race of the season
  • Photos: Sunday at Hockenheim
• 24 Oct. '09
  • Photos: Saturday at Hockenheim
  • Bianchi wins as ART takes teams' title
• 23 Oct. '09
  • Photos: Friday at Hockenheim
  • Bianchi on pole at Hockenheim
  • Vernay fastest in Hockenheim practice
• 20 Oct. '09
  • DAMS confirms Vietoris and Piscopo
  • Bortolotti joins Carlin for Hockenheim finale
• 17 Oct. '09
  • Bird joins ART for GP2 Asia Series
• 13 Oct. '09
  • Bianchi joins GP2 with ART
• 11 Oct. '09
  • Bianchi claims title with win at Dijon-Prenois
  • Photos: Sunday at Dijon
• 10 Oct. '09
  • Vietoris wins to keep championship alive
• 09 Oct. '09
  • Photos: Friday at Dijon
  • Bianchi on pole in France
  • ART leads first Dijon practice
• 08 Oct. '09
  • Bianchi not distracted by title prospects
• 20 Sep. '09
  • Van der Zande wins second Barcelona race

Homepage